Parents Meet EPD on Playground Contamination

09/22/03

East Broad Elementary School has closed its playground after toxins were found in a nearby park.More >>

Earlier this week we told you about soil at a public park testing positive for toxic materials, including lead and arsenic. The park is located right next to East Broad Elementary School. As a precautionary measure, student's will no longer be allowed to use the playground adjacent to the park.

The system says the kids aren't in any danger, but parents are still worried. They took their concerns to the school at a public meeting last night. Parents know that they should be concerned, but until further tests are done, no one can say just how concerned.

Several members from the Environmental Protection Division out of Atlanta came to answer parents' questions, but parents weren't getting all the answers they wanted.

"They don't have all their questions answered because we haven't finished testing yet," explained Jennifer Kaduck with the EPD.

Samples taken have not shown levels of the hazardous materials high enough to close the school playground, but superintendent John O'Sullivan closed it anyway to play it safe. "I'm going to apply the same standards to your child as I apply to my children," he told parents.

That's something that parents appreciate and the EPD understands. "If I were a parent and my child went to school here, I'd have some level of concern," said the EPD's Kaduck. But at this point, she says test results aren't high enough to take drastic actions, though parents need to stay on top of the situation. "They should be very watchful when the testing comes out," she said.

There still are tests being performed on the school's property and the EPD says new test results are coming in daily. The best advice they're offering to parents is to keep themselves informed. If they have any questions about their child's health, they should call their pediatrician.

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